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Friday, 26 April 2013

During a family visit to Oxford, UK last week my son
took me on a pub crawl – well, a pub lunch crawl actually. We dropped in to
sample the wares of The Trout, the Punter, the Isis, the Rickety Press and the
Eagle and Child. Local beers and good home cooking at each. But it was the
Eagle and Child, aka Bird and Baby that really captured my interest. Not only
for its splendid beef pie with golden brown flaky pastry and amber pint of St
George and the Dragon, but for its history as a meeting place for a group of
writers who called themselves the Inklings. It was in the back room of this
gorgeously warm and inviting pub that the Inklings, who included JRR Tolkien
and CS Lewis, met and read out their latest scribblings to their fellow writers.
It was so heartening to know that even such great authors as Tolkien and Lewis valued
the support of a writer’s group. I went down to the back room and imagined the
Inklings doing their readings, getting advice and sipping their ales. The pub
staff couldn’t tell me where JRR Tolkien used to sit so I sat down in each
available chair in the fond hope that some of his magic would rub off on me!

I’m also a member of an International Writers Group
(mainly UK members) which ‘meet’ monthly by email. So while I was in Oxford we
met for a three hour luncheon at the house of one of the members. It was
marvellous to put faces to names, chat about our individual publishing hopes,
swap ideas and get supportive comment on our latest efforts. The meeting was so
valuable that we hope to make it an annual event.

Oh by the way, the Bird and Baby building was used
as a ‘playhouse’ for the Royalist soldiers during the English Civil War. No
doubt they also enjoyed big beef pies and amber ale as well!

Friday, 19 April 2013

I
am halfway through reading the life of Erich Maria Remarque, (All Quiet on The
Western Front, A Time to Live and a Time to Die, etc) having completed the
biography of Somerset Maugham, (Of Human Bondage, Cakes and Ale, etc). It is
incredible to me, how those two men in the 20th century, even with the sales of
only one book when published, had them translated and circulated worldwide,
which made them a fortune. This enabled them to start their own art collections,
of mostly the Impressionists, that in today’s money would be worth more than
most countries’ GSP.

In
1948 Maugham said ‘that now was the best time in the history of books for
sales, and that in twenty years’ time there would be a huge decline! Whether he
was seeing the advent of television as a threat, or technology as a whole, we
don’t know.

Personally,
I would think that today worldwide, there are more books published than ever
before, be it independently or otherwise, without even thinking of the number
of e-books available. As a confirmed reader I couldn’t be happier, however as
an author selling my books, it certainly isn’t as easy today as those two
gentlemen had it then.

There
is nothing though, that can beat the feeling of pleasure and pride, when you
get your book hot off the printing press, and hold it in your hands for the
very first time.

Evan
G Andrew

Author
of ‘Shadows in the Night,’ the sequel ‘Shadows of Doubt,’ and ‘The Spanish
Woman.’

Friday, 12 April 2013

In the first couple of sentences Wikipedia describes
IMAGINATION (also called the faculty of imagining) as –

‘the ability to form new images and sensations
that are not perceived through sight, hearing or other senses. Imagination
helps make knowledge applicable in solving problems and is fundamental to
integrating experience and the learning process.’ Okay?

It defines

FICTION as –

‘the form of any work
that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not
factual, but rather, imagery and theoretical – that is invented by the author.
Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer
to theatrical, cinematic, or musical work.’ Okay again!

While FANTASY, I guess, is something right out of
this world!

I used to write FACT – generally from my own point
of view.

Now I write mainly FICTION – from an imaginary
character’s (or characters’) point of view and generally HISTORICAL FICTION.

I understand that in a work of FICTION the fictional
characters and/or places are imaginary but any HISTORICAL EVENTS OR PEOPLE must
be accurately researched.

These days we also have the category called FACTION.
Now I’m not so good!

Perhaps someone can give me a couple of sentences
about FACTION before I write something that is neither FACT nor FICTION,
FACTION nor FANTASY, but something like a MAD, BAD SMORGASBORD OF A BOOK; A
CRAZY CREATION CONTAINING FACT, FICTION, FACTION AND FANTASY THAT COULD SCARE
ANY UNSUSPECTING READER RIGHT OUT OF THIS WORLD.

This is Jean ‘Angel’ Allen hoping you might have
pity on a poor writer today!!

Friday, 5 April 2013

Well hello again. How is life in the fast lane? Currently breaking
the speed limit is the spoken word by the MM’s of this world (that’s Millenium
Mumblers in case you haven’t been clever.)

Why is it that the teeniest toddler with lungs the size of table
tennis balls manage to produce a volume of sound rivalling that of a Diva at La
Scala yet, later, grow into a race of MM’s? Somebody (I’ve forgotten who it was
now) once said a woman’s voice should be low and well-modulated.

Well go tell this to the infants of the world. The art of speaking
slowly and clearly is a gift in grave danger of being lost. The English
language deserves a better fate than it’s currently receiving from millions of MM’s. Appreciate,
preserve and use it in a manner enjoyable to everyone. After all, if you’ve got
something to say, do please make sure even the hardest of hearing amongst us
are able to understand and applaud your story.

But to get back to speed. Have you noticed how words are being
massacred by the AA’s of this world? (Not that
sort – the Abbreviation Addicts.) Would you for instance understand me if I
wrote ‘I hope you’ve all broken and chucked into the *WPB all those ridiculous
*NYR’s you made whilst crawling into bed singing the last line of *ALS’? (Some,
devised by texters and twitterers, aren’t quite that easy to decipher.) It was probably
a cockney old-time music-haller who started the ball rolling with *TTFN and I
must admit it sent a tingle of sentimental delight down the spine to receive an
envelope with *SWALK on the back.

But does anybody really have time for letter writing? This not
only deprives us of a long distance kiss but is causing the Post Office
tremendous monetary problems. Maybe speed is
today’s problem.

Slow down – take it easy - smell the roses on the way to wherever
you’re going and speak up!

Oh well, until next time, TTFN.

LOL (oh dear, now I’m doing it!)

Big Al

(*Too Hard Basket/New Year Resolutions/Auld Lang Syne/Ta Ta for
Now/Sealed with a Loving Kiss/and you all know the last one.)